The 45-Minute Power Lunch at Benihana Is a Killer Recession-Era Deal | Eater LA
"Launched a few weeks ago, the sub-$20 power lunch guarantees a "45-minute meal or else it’s free," pitched at office workers and work-from-home folks who want a satisfying break with some visual appeal. The restaurant was founded by Yunosuke Aoki in Tokyo in the 1940s and expanded to New York City in 1964 by his son Hiroaki "Rocky" Aoki (father of DJ Steve Aoki and actress Devon Aoki); it opened on Beverly Hills' Restaurant Row in 1971 and operated there until 2015, still maintains outposts in Torrance, Santa Monica, Pasadena, Encino, and Downey, and was acquired by One Group in February 2024 for $365 million. The reviewer, who grew up visiting for special occasions, remembers the "eatertainment" of a chef "throwing shrimp tails into his hat with a metal spatula or stacking onion rings into a mini-volcano and lighting it on fire," but emphasizes that the best part has always been the interplay of appetizers (a "profound onion soup" or crunchy iceberg lettuce salad with a tangy sesame dressing), mains, and sides—the sesame sauce for vegetables, the savory soy-ginger for meats, and the fried rice prepared on the steel teppanyaki counter made each bite distinct. At the tile-roofed Torrance outpost tucked behind office buildings and a big Korean grocery store, the space felt "long in the tooth," with low-flung, weathered wood counters; a chef arrived with a cart full of ingredients, sauces, and a clucking blue plastic rooster (ostensibly for entertaining children, which our table did not have). For $15.95 diners get soup or salad, pre-made fried rice, vegetables, and chicken, tofu, or shrimp (New York strip or filet mignon cost $19.95); the pre-made fried rice speeds service but, with the fried-rice finale skipped from the show, the reviewer felt "a slight hollowness," like paying just under $20 for a plate of vegetables, rice, and steak. Still, the reviewer enjoyed dipping the juicy steak into the ruddy ginger sauce and zucchini into the nutty, barely sweetened sesame sauce; chopsticks are effectively the only utensils needed because of the chefs' knifework. Timed on the reviewer’s phone, the main entrees were ready in 14 minutes, 30 seconds and the entire lunch finished in 35 minutes; the total cost was $31.79 (including a $4.50 soft drink, tax, and tip), and the reviewer says they would "gladly power lunch here again." The power lunch is available at all locations in Southern California and Arizona (including Phoenix Arena, Chandler, and Scottsdale) but is not served in Las Vegas at the Westgate or on the Strip. Comparatively, the offering undercuts many nearby lunch options (a chicken parm from Ggiata runs $16, a Cote-collaboration salad from Sweetgreen is $18) while still delivering the live-chef component." - Matthew Kang
